On the Twentieth Century

And the Tony goes to.....  yes, this one is a shoe-in for a nom... or six... and we'll just see who they are up against for the wins.  Warren Carlyle (Choreography) has got to be on the nominee list for his craft.  And let's not leave out Scott Ellis (Director) for his craft.  And don't think for a minute that Kristin Chenoweth is not a shoe-in her category.  Peter Gallagher just might be on the list too.

With an introduction like that - what's left but just the entire ensemble.  I have been saying since intermission of the show that this is perhaps the hardest working, singing, dancing, and entertaining ensemble that is currently running on Broadway.  It's seriously THAT good.
On the Twentieth Century is actually a musical by Comden & Green with music by Cy Coleman which is an adaptation of a play, Twentieth Century by Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur based on the unproduced play Napoleon of Broadway by Charles B. Millholland, inspired by his experience working for the eccentric Broadway impresario David Belasco. Well that's a mouthful!
It's a good old-fashioned Broadway musical.  That alone doesn't guarantee success.  This production, however, goes every extra mile to ensure the delivery is crisp, bold, smart, and rhythmic. From the invisible orchestra to the tap dancing Porters (Rick Faugno, Richard Riaz Yoder, Drew King, and Phillip Attmore), to the show-within-a-show type story, this show has razzle, dazzle, sequins, slapstick comedy, Mary Louise Wilson (Letitia Peabody Primrose) and the audaciously sexy Andy Karl (Bruce Granit).

I never doubted for a moment that Roundabout's sets (David Rockwell) and lighting (David Holder) would be magnificent.  They were.  Costumes were simply lavish perfection (William Ivy Long).

From the moment the perfectly costumed and supremely gorgeous porters tap danced onto the stage until the very end when, all in white, the cast returns to the stage not a minute was ill-spent.  Every single minute was filled with a laugh, a song, or a dance.  Every single minute.

Get your ticket to board On the Twentieth Century today.  It leaves from Chicago to New York 8 shows each week.

4000 Miles

Amy Herzog's play is receiving an extended chance at capturing hearts 8 times every week downstairs at the Mitzi E. Newhouse Theatre at Lincoln Center.

A tender and pensive work, the play tells the tale of a young man who has lost his friend on a cross-country bike trip and ends up in New York City with his grandmother.  He's lost and unable to deal with the death and she's happy yet lonely.  Together they grow and challenge each other to the mutual healing of each other in their own ways.  Gabriel Ebert, last seen at a terrific Roundabout Underground production, assumes the shy, introverted, liberal, hippie, whole-life-in-front-of-him, Leo.  The exquisite Mary Louise Wilson, who's done many things, but will probably be most remembered for her performance as Big-Edie in Grey Gardens, takes the helm as the tough-as-nails, aging, yet deeply caring and intellectual Vera Joseph.

No chorus-girls or kick-lines here.  Just good, old-fashioned high-quality theatre.  In and out in less than 2 hours with a smile on your face and a warmed up heart.

Grey Gardens

Grey Gardens is Christine Ebersole's show to shine in. And boy-oh-boy - did she ever! This recent transfer to Broadway is the story of Edith Bouvier Beale, her daughter, Edie, and their extreme relationship. The show is filled with wealthy family drama, the back-story of their connections to the Kennedy Clan, their extreme transformation with age, and of course a good dose of music - something Edith herself used to fill the many voids in her life.

Act I portrays the gay days (taken both literally and figuratively!) of the family in 1941 at the Beale Summer House - Grey Gardens - out in the Hamptons. This is the time period that young Edie meets and almost marries a young Joe Kennedy. Christine plays Mother Edith - the strong willed, powerful, yet extremely vulnerable matriarch of the Beale Family (while her husband is off fooling around on Wall Street and cheating on his wife). Kudos go out to John McMartin who plays a wonderfully entertaining Father to Edith - Major Bouvier.

In Act II Christine transforms herself into her own daughter - and Mary Louise Wilson takes over as her aging Mother in 1974 - - in what can only be described as the extreme decline of Grey Gardens. She is a recluse, the house is falling apart and they are both quite eccentric and have become locally infamous for the squalor they live in - - So much so that Jackie Bouvier Kennedy Onassis actually made several public statements on the situation of her aunt and cousin.

The quick witted and sharp tongued Ebersole tears thru both acts with gusto. Showing us at first her desire as Edith to impress and entertain - and then later her personal struggle as Edie with having her life "ruined" by her mother. In the end - she's not strong (or sane) enough to leave - despite her regrets, anger, and desire to do so.

The feelings of gaiety and lyrical music turn to hopelessness, desperation, and squalor in a mere 3 hours on Broadway at the Walter Kerr Theater on West 48th.

The Women

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Women_(play)